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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 120 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  3. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  4. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  5. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  6. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  7. Don't do anything ________________.
  8. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  9. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  10. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  11. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  12. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  13. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  14. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  15. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  16. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  17. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  18. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  19. There's no middle ________________.
  20. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  21. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  22. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  23. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  24. I have a corn on my right ________________.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. rash — a series
  3. snap — to click
  4. rash — on the skin
  5. straw — a straw man
  6. straw — to clutch at straws
  7. rash — hasty
  8. foot — a measure
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. ground — the earth
  11. stick — a piece of wood
  12. band — a rubber band
  13. stick — to attach or keep to
  14. straw — dry grass
  15. snap — to snap out of it
  16. snap — to speak sharply
  17. deal — a big deal
  18. deal — an agreement
  19. ground — a position
  20. band — a music group
  21. ground — crushed
  22. deal — to handle
  23. foot — the bottom
  24. foot — part of the body

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com